Spotlight on (little!) oleanders

But even I have to admit, as wonderful as oleanders are, their magnificent size is often a drawback in our shrinking yards. That’s one reason Ted Turner, one of our most prolific hybridizers of striking oleanders, has focused in recent years on smaller shrubs.

This weekend is the huge Oleander Festival at Moody Gardens in Galveston and if you’re in the market for a more compact, longer or repeat blooming version of the Isle’s favorite flower, this event will offer great array of selections for sale.

Among the smaller Turner oleanders available will be:

• Shari D, picture above. Free-blooming single flowers of soft buff yellow with tinges of pink in large clusters that, at a distance, resemble rhododenrons. Blooms April through the first frost and year round with a mild winter. Heaviest bloomer of the Turner oleanders. Even blooms profusely in shade. Named after Ted’s daughter, Shari Delaine Parker.

• The Sissy King. 3- to 5-foot, large clusters oif pure white blooms with a bright yellow eye. Works well in hedges or as a patio pot plant. Upright growing to from 3 to 5 feet tall. Favorite for commercial landscaping around the Coastal Bend of Texas. Named after Mrs. Richard “Sissy” King.

Saturday, May 22, will also mark the grand opening celebration of Galveston’s new Oleander Park.

6 Responses

I planted dwarf oleanders, Petite Pink and Salmon, for low growing evergreen color. Turns out they’re not as evergreen as the large ones, especially with the last frost we had. Should have just planted more Knock-outs!

I wanted to add the the smaller oleanders are coming out nicely from the winter’s freeze. They aren’t as hardy as the large ones, to be sure. Dwarf-style plants are normally not as vigorous as their full-grown counterparts (it’s one of the reasons they don’t grow as tall). But people gave up too early on the dwarf oleanders. They are coming back completely in commercial landscapes where they weren’t protected at all. I thought they bounced back extremely well considering all the cold we had!